North Carolina’s board of elections approved new mail-in ballot guidelines on Friday, the same day it began sending them to voters. The new guidelines make it easier for the state to reject completed ballots over technicalities.
North Carolina is among the first in the country to begin sending out mail-in ballots ahead of the midterms, and the new guidance reflects talking points repeated by President Donald Trump, who has claimed without evidence that mail-in voting is unreliable and rife with voter fraud.
The Trump administration is currently engaged in a legal battle over a new U.S. Postal Service rule that would require state officials to turn over lists of mail-in voters’ information and require every ballot envelope to have a scannable barcode — a policy change that many election officials worry would cause chaos before midterm voting. On Thursday, the Justice Department asked the Supreme Court to lift a federal judge’s block on the rule.
The board of election’s new policies would not affect the ballots that are being mailed out across the state, but will alter processing guidance for the board and its staff. The changes passed on a party-line vote, with three Republicans voting in favor and two Democrats dissenting.
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Sam Hayes, the executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, said in a Thursday press conference that counties across the state were prepared to begin the general-election ballot rollout, calling it “business as usual.”
“Our counties are ready,” Hayes said. “They’ve received adequate guidance and support from the state board, our staff have been working with the counties throughout the preparation stations, and we’ve put in place the necessary resources.”
The updated rules direct county officials to “spoil” mail-in-ballots when the inner envelope is not properly sealed, an envelope contains more than one ballot, or a voter’s signature does not match the name of an application number on the return envelope. The guidance also specifies that only immediate relatives or legal guardians can deliver mail-in ballots for others in person.
Democratic Gov. Josh Stein decried the changes — approved on Friday after having been put on hold by state law last week — as a “slap in the face to voters” and a “blatant circumvention of the law.”
“North Carolina voters deserve transparency in their elections, not last-minute workarounds that could keep their vote from counting,” Stein said in a statement. “I will continue to stand up for voters’ access to the ballot box.”
Experts and activists across the country have pointed to North Carolina as a first test for potential problems while the USPS rule remains stalled. The Supreme Court is expected to issue a ruling on Sept. 8.
“They’re able to figure it — North Carolina’s great,” Trump told reporters who earlier this week asked about how the USPS rule could affect the state sending out ballots. “It’s a great place. I won at golf three times.”
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